It was a picture that radiated temporal Lutyens-land power: Sri Sri Ravi Shankar flanked by half a dozen Union Cabinet ministers, including the finance minister, the BJP president, the Delhi chief minister and the Lok Sabha speaker.


Arun Jaitley may have filed a criminal defamation suit against Arvind Kejriwal, the BJP leadership and the Aam Aadmi Party may be engaged in a bitter war of words, but Sri Sri's political-cultural jamboree along the Yamuna floodplains appeared to melt away the differences. The World Culture Festival had been inaugurated by the prime minister, now it was ending with a galaxy of national and world leaders in attendance. As a power statement, the Art of Living founder had confirmed his status as India's most well connected self-styled spiritual godman.

Rajdeep Sardesai on Sri Sri, politics and spiritualism. Read